


Bright Are The Stars That Shine (Dark Is The Sky)

by vvalormorghouliss



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Family, Family Feels, Family Reunions, Reunions, Robb Lives, Robb and Gendry are bros, Sansa is a BAMF, Sibling Love, So is Arya, Starklings, Starks are the best fam, direwolves live bc I said so, happy ending!, let them be happy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-22
Updated: 2019-04-19
Packaged: 2019-10-14 16:44:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,108
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17512256
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vvalormorghouliss/pseuds/vvalormorghouliss
Summary: Robb Stark has long thought his family to be dead. What happens when he finds out they aren't?





	1. In My Life (I Love You More)

**Author's Note:**

> Sooooo.........Long time no see. I hope you enjoy this!.

Robb pulled his grey stallion to a halt. Just over the horizon, he had gotten his first glimpse of Winterfell in over five years. 

 

After hearing no news of his family during the time he spent in hiding, the letter he had received a moon ago was understandably shocking to him. His sister’s delicate handwriting he had not laid eyes upon since she had begged him to swear fealty to Joffrey covered less than half a page of parchment.

 

Robb Stark never realized how much half a page of writing could change your life.

 

For all his time in exile, Robb assumed he was the last Stark. Sansa had gone missing after Joffrey’s death (he loved his sister, but he knew what happened to young, pretty girls all alone. He only prayed that she did not suffer tremendously). Bran and Rickon were slaughtered by Theon, a man he had once called a brother. He had a very faint hope that Jon hadn’t been killed at the Wall and an even fainter idea that perhaps Arya had escaped King’s Landing after the massacre, but he didn’t hold onto it too much. That was the first thing he learnt after he had joined the Brotherhood Without Banners under the guise of Arlo Storm: hope was worthless,and more often than not,got you killed.

 

The Brotherhood had taken him in after the Red Wedding which had ended with the slaughter of his mother. His escape was blurry; all Robb remembered was watching Talisa get stabbed before fighting his way out the doors. He ran to the kennels first, but Grey Wind was gone. He did not know if his wolf had escaped or if he was killed but he had no time to dwell on it. Robb had ran into the woods where he eventually came across the Brotherhood.

 

It was strange at first. After all, Robb was a highborn lord and as much as he loathed to admit it, he had been pampered throughout his years. He had never know the constant struggle that faced the overwhelming majority of Westeros, but he was more than willing to try. The men were kind to him, and no one ever had the slightest inkling of who he was. Except Gendry.

 

Robb knew his looks were no clue in: no one looking for a northern king would expect the fair complexion of the Tullys that Robb carried. His dialect however, that was a different story. The strong, powerful lilt that his father had always compared to the howling winds of winter lingered no matter how hard Robb tried. It was something that stayed with you forever, even if you only heard it once, and for someone like Gendry who spent upwards of two years with the winds in his ears was bound to pick it out. And one day he did, dragging Robb into the wood, claiming they were getting firewood.

 

Once they had wandered a fair distance, Gendry put a hand on Robb’s shoulder. “You’re of the North.”

Robb swallowed hard, but he trust Gendry, considered him a friend (he ignored the voice in his head telling him that Theon was a friend,too). “Aye, I am.” He knew it wouldn’t take Gendry long to determine that he wasn’t a common peasant ; the brothers often teased him for the clothes he wore, saying he stole them from a lordling. Robb went along with it. He didn’t want to be known as a thief but it was safer than the alternative. 

Gendry circled around him, once, twice ,three times with a judging eye. The hair finally drew his attention; there were very few Northerners with such a fair complexion. Arya always spoke of her dreadful sister who she had hated immensely but loved fiercely with the auburn locks of a Tully. Bran was a cripple, and this man was too young to be Rickon.

“Robb Stark,” he finally said. Robb nodded

“Please don’t tell. I’m just trying to get back home, to my family. My sisters and brothers that is.”

“Your pack,” Gendry murmured. Robb looked up. Something about that was familiar, where,  _ where _ , had he heard it before? He looked at the smith quizzically-had he known a Stark?

“M’lady always said I could smith for her brother when she got back home.”

Robb stared.  _ He had known Sansa _ ?. He quickly dismissed the thought. He knew for a fact Sansa was captive in King’s Landing. And then he realized-of  _ course _ Arya would make friends with a bastard smith from Flea’s Bottom.

“She made it out?” He asked incredulously. “I shouldn't be surprised. If any of us were going to make it, it would be Underfoot.”

Gendry turned away. He didn’t want to rip this joy from him so quickly after he had found it. But he must, it wouldn’t be fair to leave Arl- _ no, Robb _ \- hoping. Hope got you killed. So he told Robb what happened, how the Hound had taken her and how she must’ve died at the Red Wedding like the rest.

Robb was unfazed. “She wasn’t there Gendry. I watched my mother and my wife and my unborn child get murdered. She wasn’t there. I’m sure of it.”

Gendry allowed himself to be happy for a fleeting moment before he assumed his stoic look again. “Well then. What do you say we find her?”

Robb grinned.

 

So, the two unlikely allies left the Brotherhood to try and reunite a family. For two years they travelled, looking for any sign of her, but Robb grew weary. They had been searching for a long time. If they were going to find his sister, they would’ve done it by now.  _ Let the dead rest _ .

Then the unthinkable happened. Littlefinger found him, and as much as he tried to hide it, he was his mother’s son, and no one knew his mother like Littlefinger. Littlefinger found where Robb and Gendry had been staying for the past month, and unbeknownst to them, told Sansa. They wanted to leave right away, but they had no where else to go and they were just beginning to settle down and make lives for themselves. No sniveling little coward was going to make them leave.

So they didn’t. And then one day, Robb received a raven with a Stark direwolf stamped onto it and held his breath while he unrolled the scroll. Sansa was home. Jon was alive, meeting with the dragon queen at Dragonstone. His sister, his brother. They were alive. Sansa was home.  _ There was a Stark in Winterfell _ . 

For the first time in 7 years, Robb Stark allowed himself to cry. 

 

And now, he was a mere few miles from his home. Inside those walls, his little sister. His brother’s direwolf, who Sansa has said was left behind when it was determined he wouldn't fare well with boats. His baby brother’s body(he had been killed by a horrible person right in front of them-that’s all Sansa had said. She would explain more in person). His father’s bones. He looked to Gendry at his right side. Gendry, a noble friend, who stayed with Robb even though he had found the wrong sister. “You might still need a blacksmith,” he had joked. 

He kicked his horse into a gallop and started for the gates.

 

He was not stopped by guards (if he had been, he would’ve fought them off). Robb jumped off his horse and in a trance, handed him to Gendry, while spinning in a circle.  _ Winterfell _ . The walls were crumbling, parts of it still remained scorch by the fire, but the bricks still held the memories of his childhood. The foundation of the archer’s stand Arya had shot from the day they found the direwolves. Looming over them, the tower from which Bran was pushed. The path leading to the weirwood trees, the remains of the armory him, Jon, and Theon used to hide in, the crypts, the castle, home, home _ , home.  _ It was overwhelming, and Robb had to steady himself against the nearest wall. 

And just when he thought he couldn’t be happier, a flash of red hair became visible over the ramparts as it descended down the stairs into the courtyard. At first he thought  _ Mother _ , but then he saw the long, northern face, and the narrow nose, and the eyes that were just a shade lighter than the Tully blue. The eyes that had sparkled when he complimented their sewing or took her out for a picnic for some “Stark sibling time” and suddenly his sister,  _ his little sister _ , Sansa, who he was so sure was dead, is standing in front of him. She was taller, and her eyes were older than the last time he had peared into them, but she was unmistakably Sansa. 

All he could do was smile and open his arms.

She ran into them, sobbing, whispering “Robbie” over and over and over until the name was just random sounds slammed together. He sighed. His family always gave the best hugs and it had been  _ so _ long since he had last held another Stark in his arms that he tried to pinch himself to make sure it was real and not a horrible twisted dream, but Sansa squeezed him tighter around his neck so that he couldn’t move. He just sighed again, content, and whispered “Sansa” into her ear until he couldn’t anymore.

When they had finally separated, Ghost had approached him. “Hey, boy,” Robb said, smiling. At this, Sansa smirked.

“I have a surprise for you, big brother.”

She led him through the winding hallways of the castle until she reached a closed door. At further inspection, he realized it was  _ his _ room from before. He looked at Sansa uncertainty, and she smiled reassuringly. “Open it.”

He did. It took his eyes a moment to adjust to the darkness, but then he realized on his still-unmade bed, the was a large lump that appeared to be moving.

“I think he’s asleep,” Sansa whispered. “This is the only place he will.” She whistled softly, and the lump moved. Robb realized it was picking its head up, and he stepped forward cautiously. A tail emerged from the lump and started swaying back and forth lazily.

 

Realization dawned in Robb’s eyes. “Grey Wind?” he said, not believing it be true but wishing  _ so  _ badly that it was. The lump rose up quickly and looked at Robb for a second before determining that his master had finally returned to him. The direwolf ran to Robb and bowled him over, sticking his face in Robb’s while being careful not to crush him. He reached out to pet Grey Wind’s head. “I knew you made it, you silly old boy.” He tuned to Sansa. “Where’d you find him?” he questioned his sister.

“He found me. I was out in the weirwood-that’s the only place Ramsey would let me go outside the castle. He ran out and killed the guards, and I thought he was just a normal wolf who would kill me. But then I recognized him, and he helped me find my way to Castle Black to be with Jon.”

“Ramsey?” Robb asked, already knowing he wouldn’t like the explanation.

Sansa smiled sadly. “Come. There is much I must tell you.”

  
  


Sansa explained everything to him. Robb had been angry at first, and then filled with overwhelming sadness that his poor, innocent, sister had to endure so much. “I survived,” she had said, but at what cost?

“Anyway,” Sansa said. “You’re home. Jon will be home soon. I’m here. Theon didn’t burn Bran, so he must be out there somewhere. Arya…” she trailed off. As much as Sansa resented her sister when they were girls, it pained her that Arya had been killed. They were blood, kin, and Arya was the only sister Sansa had. They were silent for a beat

“She didn’t die with Mother,” Robb suddenly said. “I don’t know if she died after that but she didn’t die that night. I was there.” Sansa smiled a smile, a true smile.

“Robb, dear brother?” Sansa said coyly.

“Why yes, Sansa, sweet sister?” Robb responded, a teasing tone in his voice.

 

“I think it’s past time we get our family back.”


	2. I've Seen That Road Before (It Always Leads Me Here)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jon's home, and Robb has his brother back.

 

 

Three weeks had passed since Robb had arrived back home. It still felt foreign, waking up in his childhood chambers (neither himself or Sansa could bring themselves to enter the chambers that used to belong to their parents-” When the others get home we’ll do it together” Sansa had said). Seeing his sister every day was something he never thought he’d do again, and he still had to pinch himself every time he saw Sansa walk by. Grey Wind was once again his shadow-this was probably the habit Robb fell back into the quickest. His wolf was up to his chest on all fours now, but he was still just as affectionate towards Robb as ever. The only slight difference in his behavior from before the Red Wedding was his overwhelming concern for Sansa. The wolves had always been tolerant of the other Starks, but for the most part, exhibited no affection towards anyone except their chosen master. Now, however, when he was not with Robb, Grey Wind was at Sansa’s hip. Robb had no complaints; Grey Wind was too cumbersome to bring everywhere, and although he loathed to admit it, he worried excessively over Sansa. The hardened exterior she had trained herself to keep up stayed present for the majority of the time, but every once in a while it slipped, triggered by something seemingly minute. Grey Wind had the intuition to alert Robb and run back to Sansa’s side as soon as he sensed something was wrong.

Something Gendry had made fun of Robb for since they had known each other was the fact that Robb was constantly hot. He played it off in a joking manner, but he knew that it was due to the drastic weather differences from the warm South and the frigid North he’d grown up in. Now it was Robb’s turn to mock Gendry, who was constantly miserable in response to the cold. One day, Sansa had convinced him to engage in a snowball fight. Both had no gloves or coat and didn’t have warm boots on, but they paid no mind as they screamed and laughed like they were children again. It had ended when Sansa snuck up behind Robb (aided by Grey Wind, who she’d managed to rope in as a distraction) and jumped on his back, shoving a snowball down his tunic and another in his face. He shouted, laughing, and tried to shake her off until he’d lost his balance and the two fell into the soft snowbanks. Sansa was breathless, laughing so hard she wasn’t making noise, while Robb stared at her in feigned anger until he started laughing too. Gendry had been watching from afar, and after mumbling under his breath about how they would both get frostbite, walked over to them. He bowed excessively to Sansa as he offered her his hand.

“Why thank you, Ser Gendry,” she said as she took his hand and he pulled her up. She brushed the snow off her dress before offering her hand towards Robb. “My lord.”

“Many thanks, sweet sister,” Robb said, grabbing Sansa’s hand. He was halfway up when Sansa dropped his hand, causing him to fall back into the snow. He pouted while Sansa and Gendry laughed.

Suddenly, a rush of air whooshed by them. The three looked up, bewildered, as a large best flew overhead. It took Robb a second to process that he was looking at a  _ dragon _ .  _ Holy shit!  _ He looked shocked.

 

Sansa, on the contrary, looked positively delighted. “Jon’s home!” she squealed, looking excitedly at Robb.

“Since when does Jon coincide with  _ dragons _ ?!” Robb asked incredulously. 

“Since he went to go meet with Daenerys Targaryen, Robb. We’ve discussed this at length. I didn’t want to tell him you were home because then he would abandon all else to come back,” Sansa told him.

He was about to retort, but he was interrupted by the guards shouting at each other to open the gates. Robb turned towards them.

His brother, while essentially looking exactly the same as he had eight years ago, was different on fronts that could only be noticed by someone who had been very close to him. He had tiny scars on his face, his eyes were darker, wearier, and his shoulders slumped in a way that saddened Robb (Jon always walked with his shoulders back-he often said that if you took pride in yourself others would soon follow suit). His hair, however, was just as unruly as it had always been, his face wearing the  _ exact _ same expression it always had. Robb was so invested in looking at his brother that he almost didn’t notice the silver-haired woman beside him.

Sansa went up to greet the pair first, ever the lady. She donned her Wardeness of the North face, plastering on a fake smile and curtsying at Daenerys. “Winterfell is yours,  Your Grace,” she said. She turned to Jon and the facade fell ever so slightly, giving him a real smile. Robb knew she was containing herself-Sansa probably wanted to hug him and tell him about all the going-ons that had occurred while he was away, but she didn’t want to raise concern in the dragon queen. Jon sensed this and pulled her into an embrace. It was quick, but Robb knew Sansa would be a little more collected now that she had a moment of reassurance.

Ghost bounded up to Jon, excited to greet him after their separation. “Hey, boy,” Jon said, crouching down to pet him.  _ He still sounds like a northerner,  _ Robb thought, smiling slightly. As Jon continued to pet Ghost, Grey Wind approached shyly, slinking towards Jon. It took him a second to notice the wolf, and the confusion on his face was almost comical. “Grey Wind?” he whispered before looking up to see Robb standing next to Sansa.

“Surprise?” Robb said, the joke attempting to cover up his uneasiness. Jon stood up in a flash, walking slowly to him. “Hello, Snow. You were right - the black does suit you.”

“Robb?” Jon looked shocked, shaking his head before looking at Robb again. “You...You were dead. Robb, they said you died.  _ Everyone  _ said you were dead.”

“Us Starks are hard to kill,” Robb said.

Jon smiled and laughed boomingly before throwing his arms around Robb. Robb did the same, burying his face in Jon’s cloak to hide the fact that he was crying. He had been excited to see Sansa, no doubt, but there was a distinct difference between the two. Sansa was and always will be his little sister. Jon was his brother, his closest confidant. There was something so comforting about finally being with someone that Robb knew, no matter what would have his back.

Robb was perfectly content, eyes closed and absorbing the moment. His serene mind space was interrupted by a quiet  _ hem-hem _ coming from the Dragon Queen. Robb could feel Jon picking up his head to look at her, before pulling away from the embrace. He shot Robb a look that said  _ we’ll talk later _ ,  and then turned towards Daenerys. She had her eyebrows raised. It was obvious she was uncomfortable, surrounded by emotional reunions and unfamiliar land. Robb sensed that Jon was her security blanket as of right now, the one thing tying her to the North. He stepped away to give the two space.

“Uh...Your Grace, my eldest brother, Robb Stark,” Jon said, gesturing towards Robb. Robb bowed his head in acknowledgment, mumbling a “Your Grace” in her general direction.

“A pleasure,” Daenerys smiled at him. “Jon, my men are weary after the long journey. Might we be shown to our chambers and be sent supper?”

_ She called him Jon _ , Robb mused. Perhaps his sullen brother finally had his heart pierced by love? He must ask Jon later. “At once, Your Grace,” Jon replied. “Robb, Sansa, meet me in the solar after our guests are seen to?” The Starks nodded, and Jon started walking across the courtyard, Ghost trailing on his heels.

 

***

The moon was already high in the sky by the time Jon arrived in the solar. Sansa and Robb had been there since sunset, the former sewing a new cloak for Robb while Robb played with Grey Wind on the floor. The door was left cracked, and Jon silently entered the room.

He looked haggard: bags under his eyes, shoulders slumped and all around exhausted. When he saw Robb however, his expression brightened and he sat down opposite of his brother, leaning against a chest full of furs, his legs extended in front of him. He closed his eyes, head drooping for a moment before looking up at Robb and smiling. Robb looked into his eyes, his brother’s eyes, listened to the clicking of Sansa’s (his sister!) needle, felt the warmth of the fire and smelled the smell of cold and smoke and wet dog and  _ home _ , and suddenly felt the urge to cry. Never had he thought he would be here again. His parents were dead, maybe Arya and Bran too, yes, but he had his brother and his sister and he would never take that for granted again.

It took them a while, but eventually, the brothers had exchanged their stories of what they had been doing since that fateful day that their family had split up. Sansa watched from the side, Ghost now curled up at her feet. She smiled softly - she knew Jon and Robb loved her and would go to the ends of the world if she asked, but she knew that her brothers had a much different relationship with each other than they had with her.  _ Like what I might’ve had with Arya _ , she thought. Her wild little sister, always on her brother’s heels, friends with all the smallfolk. Arya Underfoot, Jory used to call her. Sansa wondered if she was any taller, if she had finally learned to braid her hair, if she’d ever been with a man. Most importantly though, she wondered if she was alive. 

That boy Robb traveled with, Gendry, had said she was last time he checked and considering that he was the only person who had seen Arya since King’s Landing, she was more than willing to take his word for it. Her brothers laughed, jolting her out of her thoughts. They were trying to make Grey Wind roll over, and the dire wolf was currently laying on his back looking very confused. She laughed to herself, softly. Sansa had long since abandoned her sewing, choosing instead to curl up on the large bed in the center of the room. Her brothers continued trying to get Grey Wind to follow their commands for a few more minutes before completely giving up and joining her the bed, one on either side of her. They took off their boots and heavy cloaks and then turned to face her. Ghost and Grey Wind spread out in the remaining room on the bed. It was clear none of them wanted to leave each others company, but it would not be thought proper of three grown adults to stay in one room late at night, giggling like children.

Robb was most certainly not going to be the one to say he was leaving. He was the first one to get under the covers. Sansa joined him soon after, her foot grazing his leg. Robb squealed like a pig being slaughtered. “Why are your feet so cold, woman?” he asked in feigned shock. Sansa just giggled, throwing a pillow at him (which he caught deftly) before turning to face Jon. He was still sitting over the covers, looking at his siblings with his eyebrows raised.

“Aw, poor Jonny is too mature for such childish endeavors,” Sansa said, mocking him. Jon just glared at her.

“No, no, sweet sister. The real issue is his lady love. Won’t  _ Dany _ be waiting for his lordship?” Robb jested. That got a reaction. Jon growled, mumbling something that sounded like  _ not my lady love _ , before caving and putting the blankets over him. Sansa clapped in joy, burrowing under the blankets.

“I’ve got two personal heaters!” she sighed happily, kissing each of her brothers on the cheek before pulling the blankets to her chin and closing her eyes. Robb blew out the candle beside him, mouthed “good night” at Jon, and closed his eyes. 

He fell asleep with a smile on his face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! I know it's been a while, but I want to make something very clear-I write these stories for ME. For myself. I enjoy sharing them with others, but that is an added plus. I am 100% aware my posting schedule is not consistent at all. This is because I have a million other things going on in my life. It doesn't make me feel great when people comment things like "how much longer are we going to have wait?" I don't mind things like "please update soon as I'm really enjoying the story." But please don't make them rude.
> 
> Point number 2- This is an ALTERNATE universe. there are more alternate things than just Robb being alive, and I'm using my creative license. Feel free the comment or message me if you're confused in any way!
> 
> Anyway- thank you for the overwhelming love and support I've gotten from this story. I hope you will all continue to enjoy it. I love you all! Bran will come home next chapter, along with some more Gendry time to build up to the grand finale-Arya's homecoming.
> 
> Chapter title from The Beatle's "The Long and Winding Road"
> 
> Find me on Tumblr @wowshesbriliant
> 
> xxx

**Author's Note:**

> There will be 3 more parts I think-one for Robb reuniting with each of his siblings. Stick around, I'm not sure how much longer it'll be!
> 
> Title from The Beatle's "And I Love Her"


End file.
